This is more of me just needing to get my frustration out!!!! For background on a long story...I come from an Assembly of God family. I was their pride and joy Esther award (missionette; I even have my missionette completed workbook, Esther award, white Honor Star dress, and many bad 90s photos of me in a silly white dress and a white top and blue skirt my grandma would wear), Bible Quiz Team State and Regional Champion (since the third grade), missionary student college educated apologist, christian whatever needed to be done to be a believer, and etc...! To keep a longer story short... I stop believing and that was about 15 years ago. I did go on to get a BA in History and Humanities with an emphasis on Art History along with a MA in Secondary Education from a secular college.

Now...my frustration! My family claims science has no proof because GOD never fails (my family are Evangelicals but they make up college professors at a state university, nurses (several), pe teachers, accountants, firefighters, and many other college educated professions that require an education in college science). After showing them many, many, many obvious facts like Kitzmiller vs Dover that they requested for me to prove my claim (still evolution just apparently is only an opinion to them and creationism is fact?!?) Is it me or has my family LOST their minds? I am even more frustrated from the last text from a beloved (and delusional) relative... Glad I follow Jesus not man..if you kept your eyes on Jesus you would not have to spend so much of your time trying to disprove the truth that never fails...I love You...

I would leave them in their delusion but they vote, evangelize to everyone, pray (and tell me they keep me in their prayers first topic of every conversation), and post their (church) Creationist views all over the internet. And Christmas conversation question wasn't miss you and how are you, but you know who has a birthday today? (I guessed Mithras or Horus. I laughed...apparently it was not funny). I am frustrated because I know they are going to be them and tell me about God first topic of conversation. I am going to be me and speak out against their no evidence proof (besides God speaks to our hearts and faith) God and Creationism views. Thanks for listening... Does anyone have better advice to handle family that drive you nuts on the Creation and God topic?

Hey, welcome, Starbucksgirl. If you're looking for sane people, you may have come to the wrong place.
But you'll certainly find plenty of understanding and sympathy when it comes to crazy Creationist families and other delusions. You might even find some nuggets of help here and there.

Go Hawks!

It was just a fucking apple man, we're sorry okay? Please stop the madness
~Izel

Welcome, SeattleGirl123! Thanks for the lovely short bio. Glad to read that you went out and got some edjumacation after all of that!

It's understandable the need to get out certain mental garbage, and religion is full of it. Lots of people here either have experienced it or are still experiencing it. Sucks to have the words 'Forgive them, they know not what they do' actually have a very different application. I have said it aloud to myself when in religious conversation rant with my parents.

(01-01-2013 06:52 PM)Erxomai Wrote: Thanks for the welcome... and I always agree on go Hawks!

(01-01-2013 06:52 PM)Erxomai Wrote: Hey, welcome, Starbucksgirl. If you're looking for sane people, you may have come to the wrong place.
But you'll certainly find plenty of understanding and sympathy when it comes to crazy Creationist families and other delusions. You might even find some nuggets of help here and there.

Hi sg123! And welcome! You may find more understanding here than you're getting in the family. Which is of course sad, but nevertheless the hand you're dealt, like it or not.

What you might want to try as an m.o. is perhaps to not respond to religious invocations – at all – but just look the invoker in the eye with just a hint of a comiserating smile on your face. As if you're a bit worried about them (which you are). Until their monologues peter out pathetically and they shut up. However long that takes. Don't respond to religious questions. Just that vague, slightly worried smile. Do respond to mundane questions. And when they've finished just skip the whole episode and continue on with more earthly topics as if nothing has happened.
Of course you need to repeat that exactly the same every time God, or any saints, commandments, or the church are mentioned.
It will be interesting to see how long it takes for them to catch on and change their tactics. And to what.
The longer you simply don't respond the more foolish they will feel when trying.

My advice is shitty, but what I do with the weird members of my family is I ignore them when they talk about God. I know it's a dick move but I'm not going to educate them when they can just google it.

Bury me with my guns on, so when I reach the other side - I can show him what it feels like to die.
Bury me with my guns on, so when I'm cast out of the sky, I can shoot the devil right between the eyes.

When I reduce the amount of contact I have with crazy people, the happier I am.
On fb, anyone that posts relentless religious crap is reduced to the "only important" status which means I never see all that spam anymore.
I am much happier.

Try that with your family

Insanity - doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results

It's probably best to start them out with material from Christians who accept evolution. The book "Evolution or Creation, do we have to choose" is a good start[1] and one I recommend... but it depends on what you are trying to convince them of. If you are trying to deconvert them you have a long road ahead of you. Even if you reach for the easier goal of convincing them to let go of some creationist dogma and accept evolution the road is hard and long.

They really need to come to a mind state where they accept that science is a force for good in the world, and that scientists end up being right about most things - at least in terms of published science and after they've had 50 years or so to argue about the details. They have to have an interest in science sufficient to understand how science is done and how it finds things out.

Once they're largely accepting of science as a whole and only stuck on this evolution thingy then a book like the one I mentioned can be effective in tipping them over the edge. It can take someone who understands science in general but is lacking an understanding of this specific area and can elucidate it in such a way as to not force them to disregard their faith entirely while doing it. This is best achieved if there are other evolution-accepting theists they know and respect that they can talk things over with.

If their attitude to science in general is denialism then shoving a book in their face isn't going to take them anywhere. Personally my facebook page is at least 50% science-related news and the like. I personally feel that this is just a little something I can be doing to increase if not science literacy then at least science awareness and perhaps sow a seed here and there. In any case, outright contradiction of someone's views never changed anyone's mind about anything